A multi-carrier transmitter and transmission technique are described for transmitting payload data during a transmission time interval with reduced peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR). A multi-carrier modulator modulates subcarrier frequencies with payload data and provides a modulated signal for transmission during the transmission time interval. Excessive peaks in the modulated signal are extracted. The extracted peaks signal is transformed into the frequency domain to generate a peaks frequency spectrum which is processed using the frequency spectrum of certain subcarriers selected for reducing PAPR to produce a peak compensation spectrum. In one approach, that spectrum is transformed into the time domain before being modified by the modulated signal in the time domain to reduce PAPR. Alternatively, that peak compensation spectrum is modified using a modulated frequency spectrum provided by the modulator in the frequency domain and the result is then transformed into the time domain to produce a modified modulated signal with reduced PAPR.